Removing Trees - Difficult and Expensive

I love trees. I love the sounds they make in the breeze, the shade they give in the hot summer days, and the shelter they give to multiple wild critters. I love their colors, their leaves and their personalities. That said, sometimes they need to be removed and that's what I am fitting into my schedule today and a week from now.

Somewhere in the circle, under all of those trees, is my house. We love
our trees because they give us shade, privacy, and tone down the sounds of the
busy street fronting the house to the north, and the college and complex of
homes and condominiums for the elderly just to our east. This view has
north at the top, and the east/west dividing street that separates us from
a private Christian college. The curve just to the east is our creek.  

No, I'm not physically taking down trees. I am meeting with people from two tree trimming and removal companies. I have three large trees that need limbs removed so that they are out of the way of power lines and our house roof line. I also have six tall, mature trees that need to be completely removed. Removing these on our own would be difficult because of their height, location, and nearby power lines. So today I meet with Twin Cities Trees and next week I meed with Monster Trees to get some estimates. We need them removed before the spring because we have to get a storage shed and a wood shed built in the cleared areas.

The hard part for our job is access. Unlike this photo where they have a
truck right there, we have a lot that is heavily wooded with multiple
levels and we're getting trees removed from the lower yard as well as the
upper yard and front yard. It's a crap job and we'll pay a lot for the removal. 

I never approach tree removal easily. DH and I have taken down a lot of trees over the years because we live on a heavily wooded lot and need to keep up with the weed trees before they take over everything. But I really don't like removing the mature ones. That said, we don't have a choice this time and they are too big or too poorly situated for us to do on our own.

On Sunday, DH went through the trees with me and a can of spray
paint. He didn't do as nice a job of painting as this photo, so I'll buy some
marking tape at the hardware store today to mark the trees a bit better.
Still, at least I know specifically which trees need to be removed. 

So at noon today I'll be walking around the yard and pointing out trees to Mark and next week I'll be meeting with John. I have hopes that we can get this done before the snow flies, but we are cutting it close and I realize that. So ... one more thing to do on my "day off". Have a great Wednesday, all!